Birthday Present
by madsthenerdygirl
Summary: Castle really, really wants to find where Beckett hid his birthday present.


**Title: Birthday Present**

**Rating: Is there a rating higher than NC-17?**

**Summary: Castle really, really wants to find where Beckett hid his birthday present.**

**Disclaimer: I can't think of anything clever to say. I don't own shit.**

**Dedication: The basic plot for this story was actually given to me by the sweet and wonderful and wonderfully sexy Always-41319, and I humbly asked her permission to steal it. This is the result. This story is for you, babe! Consider it an early/belated birthday present. Ooh, look! Now the title has **_**two**_** meanings!**

The apartment was silent and empty. A yoga mat lay on the floor next to a pair of five-pound weights. A pile of dirty dishes were stacked in the sink, and a bag of empty takeout containers lay on the counter. The coffee table in front of the couch was strewn with papers and files. Half-folded clean laundry was in a pile on the chair, and a pile of DVDs was perched precariously on top of the television. The bedroom was neat except for the bed itself, which was unmade. In fact, the only part of the apartment not messy was the spotless bathroom. The large bathtub was gleaming, and the shelf above it held a neat row of bath salts, a box of tiny candles, lotions and a bottle of cherry-scented shampoo. There was also a stack of five books, their titles ranging from _The Agony and the Ecstasy_ to _Heat Rises_.

Everything was utterly still, exactly the way the owner had left it before rushing out the door, coat half-on and phone pressed to her ear.

The window that led to the fire escape, however, was not as the owner had left it. It was as the owner's last visitor had left it when he'd been there last night – that is, propped open with a cork drink coaster he'd swiped from a kitchen drawer.

Slowly, painfully slowly, the intruder raised open the window, the coaster having prevented it from closing completely and, therefore, stopping it from locking. The figure eased inside the apartment carefully, before shutting the window behind him. Standing up and brushing off his pants, Richard Castle surveyed the apartment of his muse and current source of frustration (sexual and otherwise), Katherine Beckett.

Last night, while eating Chinese food (he could see the remains of that meal were still on the kitchen counter), he had extended an invitation to attend his birthday party. This was Castle; he loved throwing parties, and despite the fact that he wasn't too pleased about his age, he was more than happy for an excuse to have a bunch of his friends over to drink and be merry.

Beckett had surprised him by agreeing right away; here he was, prepared to launch a full-on attack to convince her to come, and she'd just agreed. In fact, she'd gone the extra mile and informed him that she had already picked out his present.

Of course, he had to guess at what it was. He'd tried Star Wars: The Complete Series, a pony, a gun, a tie, and had even risked his life and asked if her gift was a kiss. She'd just shaken her head, biting her lip fiercely to hold back her laughter, and told him he'd have to wait until the actual day. He'd wanted to argue with her and pry some more (he _really_ wanted to know what she was getting him), but she'd been giving him that smile, that pure look of delight, the same kind she'd given him when they'd been talking about her childhood dreams after the Night of Dance case. He didn't want to ruin the moment, not with her smiling at him like a kid on Christmas morning. She was just so _pleased_ with herself. So, he'd let it go.

Well, he'd pretended to let it go.

Hence, the coaster in the window and his current presence in Beckett's apartment sans Beckett. He was going to find his birthday gift, no matter what. Especially after that morning, when they'd been working the case. Kate had looked at him with that same expression on her face as when she'd told him that next time, "let's do it without the tiger", and told him that she was honestly a little disappointed. She'd expected it to be a little harder… to get him to stop pestering her about his present.

That was when he'd realized that she'd wanted him to keep pestering her. She wanted him to pull her pigtails on this one. She was having fun teasing him, just like she had with her Halloween costume two years ago.

Not this time. This time, he was going to get the upper hand. He was going to sneak into the apartment of a cop (and not just any cop, but the best damn cop in New York or perhaps the entire U.S.), find his present, steal it, and give it to _her_ on his birthday. How's that for a birthday surprise?

Unfortunately, there was just one hitch in his brilliant plan.

He had no idea where Beckett would hide a present.

Seeing as it wasn't doing any good standing there, Castle set to work. First, he tried the living room, moving aside her DVDs and looking under the couch. He found dust and a penny underneath a _Serenity_ DVD but not a present.

He searched the kitchen, uncovering several food items that had taken on sentience and were planning world domination (he threw them in the trash), some lovely china plates in an upper cupboard and an empty pink glass vase, but no present. He did, however, wash the dishes and take out the trash. What? He was a helpful guy.

Next was the bedroom. Castle started with the closet, which was an adventure in and of itself. Beckett's closet was a disaster. Her clothes were hung neatly, yes, but that was the extent of it. Piles of shirts, sweaters and workout clothes were strewn over the shelves; belts and purses hung willy-nilly from hooks; shoes were scattered absolutely everywhere; and he kept tripping over scarves and random boxes.

Castle paused for a moment to appreciate the irony that the neatest woman he had ever met – one who knew if anything on her desk had been touched and organized the murder board like she was constructing a bomb – was absolutely messy at her apartment. Maybe it was because she didn't view it as her home. Castle thought about it. Yes, that made sense; the precinct was Beckett's home, not her apartment. Her desk, her cases, her quest for justice – that was what she cared about. Not where she slept or what she ate on.

Someday, when they'd finally put everything behind them (her mother's murder, Josh, the mayor, Josh, Gates, Josh…), he would convince her to move in with him. He'd give her a home, a true home. A place she cared enough about that she didn't throw her shoes into her closet without looking to see where they landed.

He was just about to find a stepladder or something else to stand on so that he could better see the top shelves when he heard the key turn in the lock.

For a moment he was frozen, listening with huge eyes as the front door was pushed open. He heard a groan of relief as Beckett entered the apartment, and then the slam of the door.

That snapped him out of it.

There weren't really any places that he could hide; Beckett would enter the closet in a second, she was already in the living room, and there was nowhere in the bathroom. That just left under the bed.

Castle dived underneath, rolling to the center of the bed and lying prone, his face pressed against the floorboards. Even in this state his writer brain was going a mile a minute, and the thought occurred to him that this was incredibly, incredibly cliché.

Seriously, when had his life turned into a terrible romantic comedy?

_Probably right around the time she whispered "you have no idea" in your ear, Rick._ The annoying voice in his head informed him.

There came the sound of someone – Beckett – plopping herself down on the couch, and then the sound of a zipper as she undid her… boots, Rick, boots. She was undoing her boots, not any other article of clothing that used a zipper. No, if she were to be undoing those, she'd be doing it in her bedroom… towards which she was now headed…

Shit, he was really in for it, wasn't he?

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Beckett finished taking off her boots and sighed, sinking into her couch. If she hadn't been so tired, she would have noticed that her case files on the coffee table were now organized and carefully piled up. If she hadn't been so wound up from sexual frustration, she would have seen that her kitchen was now clean and spotless. If she wasn't single-mindedly thinking about a certain ruggedly handsome writer, she would have realized that her apartment was neater than it had been in months.

Right now, however, she was too busy thinking about getting off and getting to sleep (with maybe a bath somewhere in there), to notice anything.

Getting up, Beckett made her way to her bedroom, stretching. She stripped off her gray turtleneck, dropping it to the floor. Her form-fitting jeans quickly followed, as did her socks. Climbing onto the bed, Beckett reached down and began to feel around underneath for the box she stored under there. After a moment of searching, she found it. She also brushed against a piece of fabric, and realized that she must have lost another sweater or pair of underwear down there. Feeling lazy, she didn't pick it up, but she made a mental note to clean out the dark cavern under her bed tomorrow.

Having retrieved the box, Beckett sat cross-legged and opened it. It was a simple shoebox, the shoes long gone (worn out), but it hid what had become her Castle-replacement toys. Beckett pulled out her favorite, a light pink vibrator that she'd had since her pre-law days at Stanford. This little instrument had been with her through her ambitious college days when she hadn't had time for boys, the dark days after her mother's death, her lonely time in the police academy, through Royce and Will and Demming and Josh. It had been the (poor) substitute for Castle for a long time now, and she was actually beginning to get concerned that it would break. She'd had it for nearly ten years, now. Did they have a life-estimate on these things?

Replacing the box, Beckett unhooked her bra, slowly sliding it down her arms. She was unhurried now. She closed her eyes, imagining that it was other hands, larger hands, nimble and a little rough but so talented, slipping her bra off of her. Quick hands, dexterous hands, writer hands, hooking the thumbs into the waistband of her damp underwear and pulling it down her legs, nails scratching against her skin, before discarding it for the offending thing that it was.

Kate's heart quickened, and her breathing became shallow. Just _thinking_ about him like this, just imagining him, made her wet and ready so fast that it was almost painful. She shuddered to think about what it would be like when he was actually there.

She brought her hands down to palm her breasts, swiping at the pebbled nipples. She groaned, arching her back slightly. At this point she'd have to flip from her back to her stomach and grind into the mattress like last time. It would have been embarrassing how horny she was if it didn't feel so damn good.

After a few more minutes of teasing herself, Kate slid her hand down her stomach, slipping her fingers in between her soft curls and circling her clit. She moaned, her other hand groping around until it found her vibrator. She switched it on and brought it to her aching core.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Castle's heart stopped when Beckett entered the room, but quickly started up again when he saw her shirt and pants fall to the floor. There was a moment of silence, and then Beckett's lissome hand slipped underneath the bed, feeling around for something. It brushed against his pant leg and he stiffened, hardly daring to breathe.

The hand paused, hovering there; one more inch and she would feel that there was something inside the fabric she'd just touched. But the hand moved on, intent on its original goal; namely, the shoebox by Castle's foot.

Having achieved its mission, the hand retreated, taking the shoebox with it. Castle hadn't even realized there was a box under the bed when he'd rolled under there, but he supposed his haste had made him unobservant. He took time to look around under the bed now, but there was nothing else under there… except for a lacy black thong. Castle grinned to himself and resisted the urge to reach out and snag it.

Above him, there was some shifting on the bed, and then the shoebox was placed on the floor and shoved back under the bed. The box hit Castle's ankle and he sucked his lip into his mouth, trying not to make a sound.

He watched with wide eyes as a green bra and matching pair of boy shorts joined their less-intimate comrades on the floor. It was that moment that he realized that he was in far deeper trouble than he'd originally anticipated.

When the moaning started, he realized that he was obviously being punished for some grave crime committed in a past life.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Kate was an old pro at the vibrator, and she was adventurous enough to have either become an expert at or at least tried many other sex toys, from handcuffs to bon wei balls, but it still surprised her how violent her reaction was to imagining Castle. At first, she'd only used her hand, but the frenzied way that her body moved, the things thinking of him did to her, were starting to strain her wrist. In fact, she was a little worried that she would have eventually broken a finger or something.

She was approaching the peak fast, but she wanted to prolong it. She wanted to draw it out, because she knew that's what he would do if he was actually there. He was all about savoring the moment and enjoying yourself.

Damn him for changing her masturbation routine.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Rick's breathing had become shallower, and the tent in his pants was making his current position extremely painful. The part of his brain that was still functioning realized that now would be the best time for him to make his escape. Slip out of her room while her eyes were closed and she was distracted, and he could exit through the window with Kate never being the wiser.

It took him a few minutes to get up the willpower, but he eventually rolled out from under the bed and stood up. The sight that met his eyes floored him. He couldn't have moved his feet if he tried.

Kate was using a vibrator. Her eyes were shut and face smooth and lineless with the power of her pleasure. Her mouth was slightly open, and such intoxicating sounds were emanating from it that all he wanted to do was plant his mouth on hers and drink them up. Her body was gyrating fiercely, the entire body shaking slightly.

Then she started talking, and he knew he was done for.

"Castle…" Kate hissed, her eyelids fluttering and her back arching. "God, Rick, oh God…"

His erection was straining painfully against his pants, and his legs had decided to not only cement themselves to the floor but turn into jelly from the knees up. He had a split-second decision to make.

Well, this was all about getting a birthday present, wasn't it?

He took his clothes off faster than he'd ever undressed before. His belt made a clanking sound as it hit the floor but he was already on the bed, kneeling over her. She still didn't open her eyes. She was far too caught up in her fantasy.

One hand grabbed her wrist, gently moving it out of the way and pulling the vibrator out of her. With his other hand, he held her hips down, preventing her from bucking too much. Kate gave a mewling sound of protest when the vibrator was taken from her, but then she gave a keening cry as he brought his mouth down to her wet heat.

Rick grinned. She tasted even better than in his dreams.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

She was close, so incredibly close, just a few more seconds and…

Someone was grabbing her wrist, taking her vibrator from her. Then a large hand came and held down her hips. It spanned almost her entire hip, and she whimpered. The thought crossed her mind that this was too real, this was wrong, all wrong, and she was about to raise her head and open her eyes when she felt a tongue at her entrance, working her with no mercy.

Kate couldn't help it. She cried out. The feeling was just good, _so_ good. She hadn't had anyone touch her, never mind go down on her, in such a long time. She nearly came from the first touch alone.

Opening her eyes just a slit, she raised her head and looked down to see who was doing this to her.

When she processed what she was seeing, she almost lost it.

It was Castle going down on her.

His entire upper body was gloriously bare, and she could see all of his chest and back. His dark hair was flopping in front of his eyes, and she wanted so much to reach down and spear her fingers in it, run them through and see if it was as soft as she'd imagined.

Then he looked up at her, his blue eyes clouded over and black with lust, and she realized, as she hadn't before, that this wasn't a dream. She wasn't delirious, and her imagination hadn't suddenly improved by ten times. He was there, he was really there, and he was…

Ah, God oh God oh God he was driving her _insane!_

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Rick's eyes met Kate's, and he paused. Her breasts were heaving, and a bead of sweat was working its way down her forehead from her hairline. Her eyes were just amber slits, peering down at him with confusion and shock. Then she seemed to realize what was going on, and the wonder was replaced by sheer lust.

He got right back to work, and her eyes slide closed, more of those heavenly needy sounds falling from her lips. She tasted amazing – sweet and tangy and slightly like cherries (or maybe that was his imagination) and all Kate. It was more intoxicating than wine, sweeter than any chocolate, and more addicting than any drug. He knew right then that he was never going to get enough of tasting her.

Her walls began to flutter around his fingers, and he knew that she was close. He bit down on her clit, gently, and she gasped, her eyes flying open. He began to kiss his way up her body, sampling the salty sweat clinging to her skin, his fingers still embedded in her, working her gently down from her high.

Tiny gasps and words slipped out from her mouth, her eyes glazed with pleasure as she gasped his name over and over again. He feasted on her, taking his time to taste every inch of her, making her twitch and writhe before finally, finally bringing his lips up and pressing them against hers, swallowing the sounds she was making, drinking the air she exhaled.

Kate arched her body up, desperately trying to get closer to him. He obliged her, the hand that wasn't occupied with his new favorite toy slipping underneath her back to hold her close, pressing her upper body against him while he continued to work furiously. Her last orgasm hadn't even faded completely before she was shattering again, and she would have screamed that time but his mouth was still on hers, his lips pressed to hers so tightly that they were both going to have bruises. Her hands were buried in his hair, massaging his scalp and keeping his face pressed to hers. She held on to him with everything she had, like she was never going to let him go.

Slowly, slowly, her walls stopped rippling around his fingers, allowing him to slide them out. He brought them up to his mouth, sucking on her juices. God, she tasted amazing. Kate lunged forward and kissed him, tasting both Rick's own heady taste and her own self on his tongue. He moaned, and she broke free.

Rick's eyes were decidedly smoky with want, his face a mixture of lust and amazement. Kate let her head fall back against the pillows, remembering that she hadn't even made the bed that day.

"That was amazing." Rick said, his voice tight and raw.

Kate nodded, and then cracked an eye open to peer at him. "Castle?" She asked.

Uh-oh. His last name.

"How exactly did you get here?"

"Um… the power of positive thinking?" Rick hazarded.

Kate shook her head. "Try again."

He had the grace to look sheepish. "I snuck into your house through the window to try and find my birthday present."

She did the last thing he expected of her: she laughed.

Kate flung her head back, her chest shaking with laughter. She could barely get any words out, only managing a few disjointed syllables.

"Your present…" She kept laughing, unable to finish the sentence. "Castle, you… it was… you couldn't…" Tears were streaming down her face.

"I'm honestly failing to see the humor here." Rick said, frowning.

Kate sucked in a breath and managed to get a grip. "Rick, your birthday present was pretty much what you just did."

Rick blanched.

Kate went back to laughing.

"Wait… so you… how did – but then, you – and how – what?" He spluttered.

Kate sat up a little and grinned at him. "There's an excellent lingerie boutique that Maddie introduced me to a while back; Lanie and I shop there sometimes. I was going to stop by there the morning of your birthday, pick something up, wait until every other guest had left and then model it for you." The gleam in her eyes was positively wicked. "Or, you know, something along those lines."

He gestured to their position. "So I got my present early, huh?" He said, sounding like a puppy that's gotten an unexpected treat.

"Well, really you've only gotten part of it." Kate whispered. She propped herself up and kissed him gently on the lips, before leaning forward to place her mouth by his ear. "I love you, too."

When she pulled back, Rick's jaw had dropped. At first she was scared as to what his reaction would be, but then he lunged for her, kissing her into oblivion, his arms wrapping around her tightly.

"Best. Present. Ever." He whispered hoarsely into her ear, biting the lobe gently.

Kate hummed, and then looked down at the evidence of his pleasure. "What do you say you enjoy your present to the fullest, hmm Rick?" She said, smiling at him seductively.

The formerly silent apartment quickly became the loudest one in the complex.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"You're right – birthday cake does taste better this way." Rick murmured, his mouth inches away from Kate's stomach. He gazed up at her, looking like some kind of autumn flower, her hair and skin and eyes blending in a mixture of gold, green, hazel and chocolate.

"That was definitely some party." She said, pulling him up to her to kiss his icing-coated lips. "Although your kitchen is going to need a lot of clean up."

"To say nothing of the bed." He agreed, surveying the cake crumbs and icing smears everywhere.

Kate noticed the mischievous twinkle in his eye. "Just spit it out, Castle." She said, preparing to roll her eyes.

"I was just thinking," He mused, laying soft kisses on her shoulder, "About what we're going to do for your birthday."

Kate grinned. "How about something like this?" She suggested.

"Like what?"

She then proceeded to flip him over and show him.

**Quick! Name the two Firefly references and the two Castle lines I threw in there!**

**Now, because I am inherently evil, Always-41319 now owes me a story. How about that sharing a hotel room thing you mentioned to me, hmmm? Now all you other readers go to her profile and read her work after you review mine.**

**I don't beg. I just make sly demands.**


End file.
